Photo by Heath Biter/LAist It might seem hard to believe that tonight’s game between the Phoenix Coyotes and your Los Angeles Kings carries any weight, but it does, and I’ll tell you why. With 21 games left in the season, and a lowly 53 points to their cellar-dwelling name, the Kings would be mathematically eliminated from playoff contention with a loss tonight. Not officially of course. After all, only 13 points separate the Kings......

Suns 106, Lakers 98 - Maybe Mitch Kupchak isn't a cupcake, but an evil genius. After mis-managing the Lakers in recent years, it turns out he was right about Andrew Bynum. He refused to trade the young center, and all of a sudden the kid got GOOD. Unfortunately, he's out with an injury and his backup was worthless against Phoenix (hence the evil part). Kwame Brown had seven turnovers and missed an open dunk. Bravo.......

Lakers 127, Nuggets 99 - Phil Jackson signed a $24 million contract extension for two years. Two hours later, his Lakers ripped apart the Nuggets. Good day. Heck, even Sasha Vujacic had 22 points -- 19 in the 4th quarter. Luke Walton had 14 points in just 27 minutes. Both were career highs. The Lakers are 9-6 and have recently had some pretty impressive performances. Ducks 4, Flames 1 - After getting yanked in Vancouver,......

Bruins 83, Colonials 60 - UCLA (ranked #1 by ESPN/USA Today and #2 by the AP) hammered George Washington at home and got a lot of players involved. Darren Collison returned from a pre-season knee injury to score 14 and Alfred Aboya had six points despite a broken bone under his eye. Three other players scored in double digits, including highly touted freshman Kevin Love who had 11 points and 11 rebounds. Kings 3, Sharks......

Ducks 3, Predators 1 - Another day, another 28 saves from Jean-Sebastien -- Giguere , that is. The southern JS notched his first win in goal this season after coming back from a sports hernia. Rookies Petteri Wirtanen and Drew Miller both netted their first career goals in the third period ... The Ducks continue to struggle on the power play. They were 0-2 last night against Nashville and are now 3-36 on the season.......

I've lived in the U.S.A. for more than half my life now, but I still grapple with the issue of cultural identity and a sense of national heritage. This is further complicated by the fact that my people and my motherland suffer from what I see as a lack of culture beyond a handful of longstanding stereotypes that I feel oftentimes at a loss to counter or defend, unless I am taking exception to......

Knicks 99, Lakers 94 - The Lakers got through the first half of the season without losing three games in a row, but it finally happened at Madison Square Garden. Kobe Bryant missed the game on a suspension for elbowing San Antonio's Manu Ginobili on Sunday. The elbow didn't draw a foul in the game, but the league responded strongly. Since the Lakers were already in New York, just down the street from the NBA's......

Flames 3, Ducks 2 - It's safe to say the Ducks didn't waddle into the All-Star break. They fell flat on their bill. After loosing five in a row and 9 of 11, it's a miracle that they still lead the division. While they had one of the greatest season starts in NHL history, their goose was cooked by a string of key injuries. Against Calgary, they quickly fell behind and were trailing 3-0......

Bobcats 133, Lakers 124, 3OT - Kobe Bryant proved that there's no "i" in team, and there was no victory in Charlotte. Despite pouring in 58 points (third highest total in his career), Kobe blew the game in the final 1:14 of triple overtime. First, he fouled Derek Anderson on a three point attempt, allowing Anderson to hit all three free-throws and put the Bobcats up by five. On the ensuing drive, he missed......

Kings 7, Oilers 4 - You gotta' love a game where the boxscore looks more like the roster. The Kings layed a royal scoring blitz on Edmonton, scoring the final five goals in a game where no player scored more than once. Los Angeles will play in Calgary tomorrow and Detroit on New Years Eve before returning for a four game homestand to start the new year. Elsewhere - UCLA basketball remains undefeated after......

Danger 1, Staples Center 0 - NBC 4 is reporting that the Staples Center may not be safe in case of fire or other emergency. In 2000, the a City Council investigation found that "their fire systems are not opperating." Six years later, there still hasn't been a full test. A ten minute video can be found here. Bulls 94, Lakers 89 - Despite being up by 11 in the third quarter, the Lakers......

Ducks 4, Flames 1 - Calgary was even or in the lead for the first 46 minutes, but flamed out in the third when Anaheim poured on three goals to secure victory number 26. The Ducks still sit atop the NHL with 58 points in 36 games. On Saturday the Ducks lost to division rival San Jose, who is in second place in the west with 48 points in 34 games. Elsewhere - Dodger......

Nuggets 103, Clippers 88 - For the second night in a row, as Sam Cassell went so went the Clip Show. Last night the eldest Clipper sprained his ankle in the second half and the team fell apart. The Nuggets won their sixth straight behind 33 from Mello. Meanwhile the Clips lost their fourth straight and are now sole residents of the cellar. Lakers 99, Nets 93 - Kobe and Lamar combined for a......

(AP Photo/Jeff Lewis) Remember the other day when I was telling you all about how the Anaheim Ducks had started the season unbeaten? Those were good times, eh? That was Friday. Friday night the Ducks played the Calgary Flames. And they lost. Ooops. My bad. I should mention that I also wrote early last week about the Republican control of the House and the Senate. Hmm. Interesting. I totally should blog about how I've......

Veteran's Day Weekend Edition Today "The O'Reilly Factor/Hannity & Colmes/On the Record With Greta Van Susteren" (FOX, 5:00/6:00/7:00 p.m.) Watch Fox pundits continue to spin Tuesday's election results "NBA Basketball" (ESPN, 5:00 p.m.) Miami Heat @ New Jersey Nets "College Football" (ESPN2, 5:00 p.m.) Watch red-staters pour their anguish and disappointment into the Friday night lights: Texal-El Paso @ Alabama-Birmingham "The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie" (Nickelodeon, 5:00 p.m.) Toddlers and college stoners rejoice "College Basketball"......